Fiber-optic communication networks serve a key demand of the information age by providing high-speed data between network nodes. Fiber-optic communication networks include an aggregation of interconnected fiber-optic links. Simply stated, a fiber-optic link involves an optical signal source that emits information in the form of light into an optical fiber. Due to principles of internal reflection, the optical signal propagates through the optical fiber until it is eventually received into an optical signal receiver. If the fiber-optic link is bi-directional, information may be optically communicated in reverse typically using a separate optical fiber.
Fiber-optic links are used in a wide variety of applications, each requiring different lengths of fiber-optic links. For instance, relatively short fiber-optic links may be used to communicate information between a computer and its proximate peripherals, or between a local video source (such as a DVD or DVR) and a television. On the opposite extreme, however, fiber-optic links may extend hundreds or even thousands of kilometers when the information is to be communicated between two network nodes.
Long-haul and ultra-long-haul optics refers to the transmission of light signals over long fiber-optic links on the order of tens, hundreds or even thousands of kilometers. Typically, long-haul optics involves the transmission of optical signals on separate channels over a single optical fiber, each channel corresponding to a distinct wavelength of light using principles of Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) or Dense WDM (DWDM).
Transmission of optical signals over such long distances using WDM or DWDM presents enormous technical challenges, especially at high bit rates in the gigabits per second per channel range. Significant time and resources may be required for any improvement in the art of high speed long-haul and ultra-long-haul optical communication. Each improvement can represent a significant advance since such improvements often lead to the more widespread availability of communications throughout the globe. Thus, such advances may potentially accelerate humankind's ability to collaborate, learn, do business, and the like, with geographical location becoming less and less relevant.